If you were injured in an accident and have made a claim for personal injuries, you may be seeing just how long the process can take. Many times, even a simple and routine accident claim can take as much as 6-12 months to settle. Many times, for more complicated cases, the process can take many years. Regardless of the type of case you have, here are some reasons as to why your personal injury claim is taking so long to settle.

You Are Still Receiving Medical Treatment

If you are still actively receiving medical treatment, the case cannot settle until all treatment has concluded. Insurance companies require that before there is an evaluation of a case, the claimant has to be at a medical end result. Once your treatment has been completed and you have reached the end of your treatment is when the case can progress.

You Have Preexisting Injuries

If you have previous injuries to the body part(s) you claim were injured in this accident, that can delay your claim. The reason is that insurance companies will want to see prior medical records if you have similar injuries in the past that are being claimed for a current injury. For example, if you have a workers’ comp case and you are claiming back or neck injuries, if you have had similar injuries in the past, then the insurance company will likely want to see these prior records.

Liability Is Being Challenged

If the insurance company says its insured (the person or company they insure) is not responsible for the injuries, or only partially responsible, then that can delay things with your case. For example, for an auto accident case, if both drivers involved are pointing the finger at one another for causing the accident, then can cause delays. Or, for a slip and fall case, the insurance company may claim its insured was not aware of the condition that caused you to slip. Liability issues with any case, no matter the type, can cause delays.

Negotiations Have Hit A Stalemate

Sometimes parties can disagree as to what the settlement value of the case is. If the parties are not able to agree on a settlement number, that can cause serious delays. Sometimes, in this situation, a lawsuit is the only way to break the stalemate.

The Case Is In Litigation

For cases that have been filed in court, the litigation process can move very, very slowly. With extensive discovery, depositions and motions, litigation can really slow down a case. However, a case can sometime be moved closer to settlement by the filing of a lawsuit. For cases though that are heavily contested, litigation can take years until settlement or eventual trial.

Feel free to contact us at the Earley Law Group Injury Lawyers if you have any questions relating to any type of injury claim. We only get paid if your case settles, and consultations are always free of charge at our office.